Union undergarment.



1' i.1 woor t UNrrED STATES PATENTUOFFICE.

ASA J; `Haitwoop,

i l/'o all ir/i'om'it'may concern:

deitknoivn that I. Asa J. HARvvooD, a citizen `oftlie United States,- residing at Richmond. in thecounty of Tayne and` btate of Indiana,'have invented certain new and" useful Improvements in Union Undergarments. of which the following is a full, clear. and exactpdescription, such as Will enable othersfs'fkilled in `the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

. This invention relates to undergarmentsl i and more particularly to union suits of the drop-seat.t vpe for menj`s vvear. i

Oneo'f the 4objects of the invention is tol provide an 'iiiiprovedunion undergarment i'vhich may be constructed with an economy of material and at a A'reduced manufacturing cost. I Y

i not'herobjectisto provide a simplified dropf-seatunioii suit comprising a minimum number of pai-'ts vand embodying various :"featu'res. enhancing the comfort, lconvenience and seiviceability of the garment in A fu'rthenobject is'to create a commercially practicable drop-seat union suit having 1 characteristics of structural superiority and function-.il advantage. l

OtheigobJects and advantages will be in Apart obvious andin partiioted hereinafter in connection .ivithf theu accompanying draw.-

.ings vvhich illustrate a typical embodiment of the'invei'ition.y e

ln the drawing.Figure l is a front elevationalvieiv of aunion undergarment:

kF ig. 2' is 'a rear elevational vie\v of the same:

l Fig. '3 is'-a'sidevie\v of a tubular knitted blank, in aninitial Istage of inanufactui'e:v

' same: and Fig". (i is an elevational view of vfullness vvhere desired and to overlie the posterior utility Opening.

Referring more specifically to the dra\vings. the union suit illustrated comprises or RICHMOND;` INDIANA, AssIciNoRl ToJrHn 'AT'LAS co., "or -PKIQUApoHIofA CQRPORATION or 01110.. :L f

i Sileccato'n 0ffLeti'ters'Patent. "1.916 Applicationled July 13, 1915. Se`ria1No. 39;,537. l

a body land legs 2 of integrally knitted or Woven material or other'siiitablefabric.l Arms 3 and collars i, as vvell as suitablecufsv and anklets, may be v provided if desired.'

.T he body l is centrally slitted at 5 and provided -ivitli faced reinforced edges to`- Aoverlap and fasten by buttons 6 or other means fording requisite fullness to this portion of the garment. The seat' li is attached to the rear of the body a't pointsl and 16 slightly above and beyond tliesides of the .posterior opening and is stitched from thence along the converging lovver edges ofsaid openi-ngto points 13 and l2 of theleg seams.v Where an extension of added fullness' of the seat curves foi-War and upward to the point 7,'being stitched to tlie'edges of the front leg material. An upper and taperediiap 17. of the seat overlapsrthe body material above the opening 9 and is attached thereto rby a pair of buttons or tht` like.l It vivill beapparent that bv uiifactening and droppingthe seat flap l?, the posterior opening S.) of relatively large Adiiiiensi'ons becomes exposed.;I Furth'erinoreathe seatprovidesfin effect/a gore between theA leg portions ofthe garment and gives a comfortable fullnessin the seat and crotch. Also. as ywill be. herei'iiaftei` r"Cle-l scribed'inore in detail. the piecefliiprovides' lan anterior fullness lfl'ceiitrally offset and adjacent the crotch which renders the garment of increased comfort in use and allows left dress. as will be understood.

Referring more particularly to-the second sheet of the drawings, there is shown an in tegrally knitted or Woven tube 20. constitilting a blank from which the body and legs of the garment are formed. In practice. the blanks 2O are cut in multiple: that is a plurality of the saine are folded at and superposed so that several of the garments UNDERWEAR 4permitting ready separation and attachment of the sides when the garment in invested.

may be cut at a single operation. The lower corners of the blanks are severed at the front (the left in Fig. 3) from Q1 to Q2, and at the rear from 23 to 21. A cut is also made to provide the posterior opening 9, this c ut extending from the rear leg cut at 24, curving upward into the body portion,

. to 25. and arching outward from adjacent 25 to the rear edge of the folded blank, atQG. A short central slit 2T is also cut at this time in the upper end oi' the blank for ar1nholes. The tubular units are then. operated and refolded fiat at right angles to the first fold into theaform of Figs. -1 and 5, respectively, rear and front views, prior to stitching. At this time, or before,l a central slit 2S is also cut into the body. 'The' seat pieces 1l are similarly cut in piles and according to a fiat pattern shown in Fig. 6. that is. of substantially rectangular shape with the upper corners tapered and having a curved slit or shearing 29 in-the lower edge oifset from the center.l More specifically, the location and dimension of the slit :29 is such that the lower edges of the piece 14 from the corner 30 to point BLequals the remainder of the edge 31, 32 to 33.

The seat piece 14 is sewed to the body of the garment in the manner above described; that is, with edges 15-30 and 16-33 applied to body edges -Ql and 2SC-2l to the inseams of the legs, and with edge 30-31 to front leg edge and edge 33-32--31 to the opposite front leg edge '212-22. The loose material of the seat between points 30 and 33 thus provides a gusset in the garment crotch with all seams oli-centered so vthat the crotch Iis formed of smooth, unstretched fabric whereby rictional irritation or binding is eifectually eliminated in this region. Furthermore, as above indicated, the material of the seat at the full side of slit 29 folds to provide a centrally oii'set pocket or fullness 19 in front of and adjacent the crotch. The garment is thus, in effect, ot the full-fashioned in general to the human form, and this result 1s attained without altering the knitting or weave of the body or seat, or stretching,

the same in any part.

The provision of the cuts 25-10 and Q5-11 in the body adjacent the posterior the lower part of the seat is stitched Y type, that is, conformingv is dropped, the strain as the parts are separated` falls equally on the' entire transverse length of the seams from 25 to 10 and 25 to 11, so that any liability to tearing or dis.- connection at these points is obviated. Also when the .flap is buttoned to close the rear y opening, a substantial overlap of the entire arched upper edge of the opening -is attained. A complete closure is thus effected and without any tendency of the parts to 4fold or wrinkle with attendant discomfort to the wearer. The tapered formation of the flap also allows the use of but two fastening buttons, which facilitates manipulation ythereof when desired.

Having described my invention, `what I claim as new andA desire to secure by Letters Patent is i 1. A drop-seat union undergarment comprising suitable body and leg portions, and a drop-seat portion closing the crotch and providing an anterior centrally offset fullnessadjacent the crotch. Y

2. A drop-seat union undergarment comprising, in combination, a tubular body portion having a cut-away posterior opening arched upward from points adjacent its sides and having outward and upward extending severances from saidpoiiits, and a seat .portion having straight edges.- stitched to the edges of said severances and thence towardthe crotch and having a drop flap there'above to overlie the arched edge of said posterior opening.

3. s an article of manufacture, a union undergarment drop seat substantially rectangular in shape and having a centrally.y

said seat substantially equals in length the remainder of said lower edge together with the edges ot' said severance.

In testimony whereof I vaffix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

. ,ASA J. HARWOOD.

Vitnesses:

G. C. Goonr., R. H. Noss. 

